As the coronavirus pandemic continues to afflict the entire world, industries and markets are profoundly affected by government policies that are aimed to maximize social distancing. As an effect, many companies have closed down their stores and operations temporarily; lockdowns are preventing people from participating in trade, and employees are losing their jobs.

Unemployment has become the most apparent effect of the pandemic to the working class. In a new report published by WalletHub, millions of Americans have e found themselves temporarily or permanently out of a job at a record number of initial unemployment insurance claims, at over 6.6 million, for the week of March 23 alone.

The report analyzed and compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia in terms of the increase in the number of unemployment insurance initial claims in 2020 vs. 2019. Similarly, it also studied the rise of such requests within the months of 2020.

Louisiana tops the list

States such as Louisiana, North Carolina, Indiana, New Hampshire, Florida, Virginia, Michigan, Kentucky, District of Columbia, and New Mexico were the most affected states in terms of unemployment with increases in the number of unemployment insurance initial claims to the tune of more than 8,000%.

The state with the current most substantial number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. is New York. “New York has seen a 717% increase in initial unemployment claims from the beginning of 2020 to the 13th week,” said Jill Gonzalez, WalletHub analyst. “This is better than the average increase of 2,002%.”

Source: WalletHub

Lousiana charted a 3198.22% increase in the number of unemployment claims between January 2020 and March 2020. Data from the firm also suggests that the Blue States are more affected in terms of the increase in unemployment claims.

Blue states appear to have been affected more

“With an average unemployment rank of 25, Blue States suffered a higher increase in their unemployment during the coronavirus outbreak than the Red States, which rank 27 on average,” said Gonzales. “The lower the rank, the higher the increase in initial unemployment claims that state received during the coronavirus pandemic.”

Meanwhile, the firm urges the White House to help companies through these trying times – especially those that are struggling the most. “States should aggressively focus on helping the companies in the most need. The federal response will include sending checks to most citizens, even those whose income has not been affected by the coronavirus. States can use a more targeted approach to divert resources to the companies affected the most, thus having a maximum impact for the money spent,” she added.

An idealist straight from business school who works as a content marketer, digital branding consultant, and graphic designer. Outside work, he spends his time taking care of his cacti and painting watercolors.